Dracula Has Risen from the Grave

Rating:
Summary: Freddie Francis deserves more respect.
Review: This Dracula film is a fine example of Hammer Horror. It is full of gothic atmosphere that is achieved through wonderful set design, lighting and photography. Granted, it is not as good as the first three Dracula films(Horror of,Brides of,Prince of Darkness). But, as said, it is a fine piece of filmmaking that is well crafted by its director Freddie Francis.

Rating:
Summary: Eerie and engrossing Hammer Vampire effort
Review: "Dracula Has Risen From The Grace" is one of the highwater marks of the Hammer Dracula series and features the wonderful Christopher Lee in his third outing as the world's most famous vampire, the blood sucking Count Dracula. Made while the Dracula cycle of films were still fresh this film is one of the best that Christopher Lee did in the role and is a vast improvement over the previous effort "Dracula Prince Of Darkness". The main yardstick for measuring this improvement is that sparse as his screen time is again, Lee has dialogue in this entry which adds tremendously to the overall impact of Dracula's sinister presence.

Ably directed by veteran Hammer man Freddie Francis the film opens a period of time after the conclusion of the earlier film where a small village experiences a horrible death in the bell tower of the local church. The terrified townspeople still living in fear from the shadows cast by Dracula's abandoned castle prompt a visiting Monseignor to travel up to Castle Dracula with the cowardly local priest to ensure that the vampire curse is removed once and for all by placing a holy cross over the main entrance door. Unknowingly the priest awakens Dracula with some of his own blood and soon the world's most famous vampire is alive and seeking revenge on the Monseigner and his family, in particular his pretty neice who becomes the object of his attentions.

Apart from the superb "Horror Of Dracula" that immortalised Christopher Lee in the role of Dracula this is the finest entry in the series. Extremely atmospheric with a clever use of day/night photography, great period detail, eerie forest and cemetery scenes and hazy rooftop shots the film is a superb period horror tale. The sinister black hearse with black feather plumes that Dracula drives through the forest is a wonderful addition to the story and really builds a feeling of dread with its ghostly presence during many of the climatic parts of the story.

Even though Dracula is actually on screen for limited times Christopher Lee with his tall commanding presence, blank expression and dark suit and infamous scarlet lined cap really makes the film. The sexual element to Dracula's nature is also very apparent here as it was in "Horror Of Dracula". That was part of the attraction of Dracula's character as played by Christopher Lee, extreme evil and menace combined with an allure of sensual arousal which made his seduction of the women in these stories so believable. "Dracula Has Risen From the Grave" benefits from the usual fine performances by Hammer regulars such as Rupert Davies in a great performance as the Monseignor Ernst Muller who is the target of Dracula's revenge for defiling his castle, the always excellent Barbara Ewing in the role of Zena the barmaid who is made to do Dracula's bidding and Barry Andrews as Paul the hero of the piece who sets out to protect the Monseignor's neice Anna, from falling under Dracula's sway. Finally Ewan Hooper is excellent as the weak willed parish priest who is responsible for raising Dracula from his grave and who becomes Dracula's follower much against his own will. The Film boasts one of the most impressive and indeed blood curdling demises for Dracula which I wont elaborate on for the benefit of those who haven't seen this film yet. It really is superbly done and paved the way for the next entry in the series "Taste The Blood Of Dracula" in 1970.

Lovers of Hammer films and Dracula stories in particular will revel in "Dracula Has Risen From The Grave", it is one of my particular favourites and I admire it for all the great elements that make for a memorable horror story that are present here. Christopher Lee's impressive portrayal of the evil Count is something to see and his will always be the definitive interpretation of Dracula on screen. For chills and eerie atmosphere you can't go past "Dracula Has Risen From The Grave".

Rating:
Summary: Dracula is back and being a vampire was never so sexy
Review: "Dracula Has Risen From the Grave" might have Christopher Lee as the Count, but this is really director Freddie Francis's film. Francis replaced Terrence Fisher at the helm and all of the differences between this 1968 effort and other Dracula films can be traced to the director. A year has passed since Dracula died in "Dracula--Prince of Darkness," and a Monsignor (Rupert Davis) finds the locals still living in fear so he drags the local priest (Ewan Hopper) up to Castle Dracula to perform an exorcism. What they succeed in doing is accidentally bringing the vampire back (the title gives it away again, huh?). Finding a cross on his front door, Dracula goes after the Monsignor, although he finds plenty of time to put the bite on a couple of lusty wenches: Zena (Barbara Ewing), the bar maid and Maria (Veronica Carlson), the Monsignor's beautiful niece. In the end it is left to Paul (Barry Andrews), Maria's insipid lover to save what is left of the day.

When Dracula sinks his teeth into the women in "Dracula Has Risen From the Grave," the sexual elements are extremely blatant. But as fascinating as such scenes are to the average adolescent male, what sticks out for those of us who love vampire movies is not so much the wooden acting but the gross violations of the vampire mythos. We get to see Dracula's reflection and apparently driving a stake into a vampire is no longer enough to make the undead dead. This film misses both the vision of Terrence Fisher as a director and Peter Cushing's strong presence as the heroic Van Helsing.

Rating:
Summary: An atmospheric period horror piece
Review: "Dracula Has Risen from the Grave" opens to the sounds of James Bernard's evocative, ominous main musical theme. Directed by Freddie Francis, the film stars horror icon Christopher Lee in one of his many portrayals of cinema's most celebrated vampire. This version features a lean, effective screenplay by John Elder.

The film opens in a small, pre-industrial village that had previously been terrorized by Dracula, who is presumed to have been destroyed. As the title of the film indicates, however, Dracula soon rises from his grave to begin a new campaign of bloodsucking villainy. His foes in this film are a Catholic monsignor and the boyfriend of the monsignor's lovely niece.

Bernard's solid score is complemented by good art direction. Francis makes effective use of forest and rooftop settings as Dracula pursues his ends. Lee gets solid support from the rest of the cast. Barry Andrews makes a particularly appealing young hero as Paul, the boyfriend of the monsignor's niece. I also was impressed by Barbara Ewing's performance as Paul's sexy co-worker.

There is a pronounced sexual feel to vampirism in this film (as in the other Lee Dracula films I have seen), so there is a delicious irony to the fact that one of Dracula's key foes here is a Catholic monsignor, and thus presumably celibate. Also, a religous controversy among Dracula's foes makes for an interesting contrast to their battle against the undead villain. Overall, a well made and solidly entertaining film.

Rating:
Summary: Dracula is back and being a vampire was never so sexy
Review: "Dracula Has Risen From the Grave" might have Christopher Lee as the Count, but this is really director Freddie Francis's film. Francis replaced Terrence Fisher at the helm and all of the differences between this 1968 effort and other Dracula films can be traced to the director. A year has passed since Dracula died in "Dracula--Prince of Darkness," and a Monsignor (Rupert Davis) finds the locals still living in fear so he drags the local priest (Ewan Hopper) up to Castle Dracula to perform an exorcism. What they succeed in doing is accidentally bringing the vampire back (the title gives it away again, huh?). Finding a cross on his front door, Dracula goes after the Monsignor, although he finds plenty of time to put the bite on a couple of lusty wenches: Zena (Barbara Ewing), the bar maid and Maria (Veronica Carlson), the Monsignor's beautiful niece. In the end it is left to Paul (Barry Andrews), Maria's insipid lover to save what is left of the day.

When Dracula sinks his teeth into the women in "Dracula Has Risen From the Grave," the sexual elements are extremely blatant. But as fascinating as such scenes are to the average adolescent male, what sticks out for those of us who love vampire movies is not so much the wooden acting but the gross violations of the vampire mythos. We get to see Dracula's reflection and apparently driving a stake into a vampire is no longer enough to make the undead dead. This film misses both the vision of Terrence Fisher as a director and Peter Cushing's strong presence as the heroic Van Helsing.

Rating:
Summary: That Christopher Lee "Bites" Big Time!!
Review: .....I mean "bites" as in ... "let me suck your blood", not as in the other ... er ... derogatory meaning!! :)

I have yet to see another actor portray the famous Transylvanian Count as well as Christopher Lee! He seems to have been born to play the part of Dracula (or a variety thereof). It's hard not to shudder with fright when Mr. Lee's cape-draped image is shown on screen. His presence is quite imposing indeed!

This third Hammer Dracula outing is nearly as good as the 1958 original picture! Great dark, damp atmosphere saturates the film. Highly credible music score as well (as is per the normal in this Hammer series).

Rating:
Summary: OK film is a little improvement over the first sequel
Review: A little better this time around, although having Professor Van Helsing would have made it a nicer film to watch. At least this time, the Count actually speaks.

If you are a fan of these Hammer films, stick with this and the other period films. This is one to have for your collection if you are a die hard fan like myself. If not, at least rent this one at Halloween for a night of horror.

Rating:
Summary: Solid outing with the count
Review: By the time of "Dracula Has Risen from the Grave", Christopher Lee had resigned himself to the fact that the films weren't going to reach the high of the first film in the series. While "Grave" doesn't measure up to "Horror of Dracula" (or even the single solo Van Helsing outing "Brides of Dracula" which hopefully will finally see the light of day on DVD), "Grave" benefits from spooky cinematography and solid direction by Freddie Francis.

Although the Count have much to say here he's at least more than a menacing shape as he was in "Dracula Prince of Darkness". The main weakness of "Grave" is Van Helsing. Cushing, like Lee, brought incredible energy and vitality to any role he tackled whether it was well written or not. Clearly Hammer needed an infusion of new blood here. Luckily, "Grave" still has considerable bite and isn't as anemic as later entries in the series. While far from a classic, "Grave" has considerable power particularly when Lee's presence dominates the scene.

The transfer looks pretty good overall given the age of the negative. It appears that most of the budget for this DVD went into the transfer how else to explain the complete lack of extras? Personally, I would have been willing to pay a bit extra for a commentary from Lee or other production crew members.

Rating:
Summary: Sex and the Vampire.
Review: Christopher Lee's third appearance as the sanquinary Count Dracula. The virtuous niece of a stern monsignor falls under the spell of the resurrected vampire. Her pristine demeanor notwithstanding, she is defiled by evil lusts. As Dracula approaches, she eagerly unbuttons the high collar of her otherwise diaphanous gown and yearns for the kiss of the vampire. As time went on, the implied sex of these Hammer films was more conspicuous. Of course, the penetration is of the fangs-in-the-neck variety, but the sexual symbolism is there. A willing young barmaid with desire in her eyes, her mind clouded by the vampire's mesmerizing mist, gazes with longing on the Prince of Darkness, and rushes to his embrace. Lee's personification of Dracula is by now classic. His towering, menacing presence, draped in the trademark flowing black cape is one of the attractions of the film. Cool and seductive, he also rages with fangs showing and bloodshot eyes glaring. Villagers tremble behind barred doors when evil is ascendant. The director emphasized visual presentation over heart-pounding suspense, but there are enough thrills and chills to satisfy. The typical Hammer traits of great color photography, prominent bosoms, and a 19th century European setting are present. Even if the local villagers of Central Europe do speak with a British accent, so what? Peter Cushing as Van Helsing is absent from this scenario, but viewers won't be disappointed. As a suspense flick, it is a good change of pace from insane killers stalking teenagers. Recommended viewing for horror fans. ;-)

Rating:
Summary: worst of all hammers
Review: Dracula gets locked out of his house and is justifiably upset. Then follows 2 excruciating hours of boredom. The Dracula cycle was never as good as the hammer frankenstein cycle. Why? because Dracula never has anything interesting to do... always its vengeance against those who have awakened him, no plot, no cushing or morrel, horrible photography (unusual for hammer) and dismal, though doom laden score.

And dracula is such a wimp too.....